Ottawa mayoral cadidate promises to raise Palestinian flag at city hall if elected

Ottawa mayoral candidate Neil Saravanamuttoo pledged in a campaign video to raise the Palestinian flag at City Hall if elected, citing the UN commission's finding of genocide in Gaza. He stated 70,000 civilians, including 20,000 children, have been killed. The pledge drew backlash from B'nai Brith Canada and Honest Reporting Canada.

Ottawa mayoral candidate Neil Saravanamuttoo, an economist and podcaster, pledged in a campaign video posted Friday to raise the Palestinian flag at City Hall if elected. In the video, filmed outside the Ottawa Palestinian Festival, he stated that leaders have a responsibility to call out injustice and that he agrees with the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry's finding that what is happening in Gaza is a genocide, asserting 70,000 civilians including 20,000 children have been killed. He also pledged to stand against Islamophobia, anti-Palestinian discrimination, and antisemitism. The pledge drew backlash from B'nai Brith Canada, whose director Richard Robertson said it is distressing to make the Israel-Palestine conflict a focal point of a municipal campaign. Honest Reporting Canada accused Saravanamuttoo of focusing entirely on the war in Gaza rather than local issues and repeating what it called a false genocide libel.